But what really set the event apart were its organizers — a bunch of really, really busy UC San Diego students.

More than 550 competitors, high school and college athletes from California and Arizona, participated in the two-day Tritonman.

On Saturday, the event hosted a draft-legal race - a faster, more competitive triathlon seen at higher levels of competition. On Sunday, the classic triathlon took place with a 750-meter swim, a 20-kilometer bike ride and a 5K run.

The overall event was coordinated by members of the university’s triathlon team, who rely on it as a major fundraising source because the university doesn't provide funding. Proceeds from the competition help foot the bill for the team’s uniforms, travel expenses, entry fees for other events and training equipment.

More than $30,000 was raised during this weekend, and after expenses, the team pocketed more than $20,000.

It took a lot of work to reach the completion point Sunday, especially because the organizers were also full-time students.

When Jennifer Raehms was transitioning from her sophomore to junior year at UC San Diego, her academic responsibilities started to pile up, and she had to make a tough choice. She gave up National Collegiate Athletic Association athletics because of its strenuous time commitment. But after about six months, she started to miss being part of a team.

One say, she remembered, “There just happened to be a triathlete sitting in a coffee shop, and I thought, ‘Oh, I could do that.’ ”

Raehms asked when the team practiced and then showed up for its next session.

“I used to run, so I thought I was in shape enough,” the 22-year-old remembered. “I barely finished the first practice. I was really embarrassed.”

She still came to the next practice. And the one after that. And so on.

Soon, she was sinking 15 to 20 hours a week into her training — on top of her studies as a fifth-year bioengineering major.

“I love it. That’s why I’m here,” Raehms said. “The team atmosphere and what we get to create as a community definitely make all the effort worthwhile.”

Being eco-friendly is one of the team’s efforts.

Several years ago, Tritonman became the first collegiate race to gain certification as an environmentally sustainable event, according to the Council for Responsible Sport.

“We work out in the environment every day,” said Joanna Coker, a fourth-year human biology major at UC San Diego. “I love to go outside to run and bike; that’s part of what makes it so much fun. You don’t want to pollute that environment for yourself and other people.”

To reduce Tritonman’s carbon footprint, the team didn’t hand out swag bags or paper bibs in the hopes of cutting down on trash. The organizers went so far as to compost as much event-related garbage as possible and pumped the swim course’s buoys by hand, instead of using a generator because that would have consumed electricity.

“A lot of people don’t realize how wasteful these races can be,” Coker said.

Next year, the triathlon’s coordinators want to go further by offering para-athlete legs for disabled athletes who need them.

David Berry, this year’s race director and a bioengineering graduate student at UC San Diego, said at the heart of the event is a shared passion for the sport of triathlon.

“It’s a whole bunch of college kids going out there and having fun,” he said.